LAHORE - PTI Punjab chapter has planned a foot march to participate in Islamabad lockdown campaign on November 2, a party spokesperson told The Nation yesterday.
The participants of the foot march, which is named as “Paidal March”, would gather at Data Darbar from where they launch the march to federal capital to take part in lockdown drive, likely on October 25 (Tuesday), disclosed the party spokesperson.
A motor vehicle would move with the caravan of foot marchers carrying food, water, emergency medicines and other necessities up to Islamabad from Data Darbar (Lahore), added the spokesperson.
About the number of participants, the spokesperson said that the number has not been fixed for the march, as it is aimed at morale boosting campaign for the rest of the participants to leave for Islamabad lockdown. Party’s provincial leaders, Chaudhary Sarwar, Ijaz Chaudhary and Mian Mehmoodur Rasheed would make an announcement about the Paidal March during a media briefing on Monday at chairman secretariat.
The party’s central Punjab leadership is narrowing Qaddafi Stadium as the staging point for the participants of Islamabad lockdown. However, keeping in view the hurdles, most likely from the government to stop the Imran’s followers to proceed for Islamabad from a single point, the central Punjab leadership is also considering directing the party activists to march from their respective districts instead of gathering at the stadium, according to the spokesperson.
Contingency plan for Islamabad lockdown campaign for Punjab is being prepared to avert arrests and detentions. The plan would be conveyed to the provincial and district leaders of Punjab in the last moments of the launch of the drive to avoid possibilities of leaking of the plan to the government quarters, the spokesperson added.
Party leaders Chaudhary Sarwar and Ijaz Chaudhary told The Nation that the Punjab leadership has devised several plans concerning Islamabad lockdown campaign which would be disclosed in different stages keeping in view the developing situation. “It is the government which would undertake bids to convert the peaceful protest of the PTI into a violent one,” they claimed, adding that the government should not create any hindrance to stop Imran’s followers for launching a campaign for a just cause.
Meanwhile, party’s secretary general Jahangir Khan Tareen has constituted a 24-member legal committee to provide legal assistance to the party activists for Nov 2 showdown plan.
The party leaders and workers who would be detained or harassed by the government while entering into the federal capital would be provided legal assistance through this legal committee.
According to a notification of party’s secretary general, the 24-member committee includes 12 members for federal capital and as many for Rawalpindi.